Page 3 of Executive Decision

I chuckled. “No. I’d do the same. Tell your dad everything. Lay out the case. You gotta find the risks—to find where the bodies are buried, right?”

She adorably cocked her head. “I never thought about it like that, but yes.”

“Then do your job. You will be rewarded for your honesty.”

She removed her glasses and took down her ponytail, fanning an impressive head of wavy blonde hair. I tried not to ever think of my female coworkers as attractive—it was rude, and I was above shitting where I ate. However, Daphne was objectively pretty.

She exhaled, then flipped her hair back and replaced her glasses.

“So, this fucking guy. Look at this!” Daphne beckoned me to her side.

I read over her shoulder as she drank beer. She found gold in a bad admission from the CFO about contracts he signed but didn’t review—legal catnip.

“If we got audited right now, we’d be fucked,” Daphne said.

“I had no idea.”

“You’re not a lawyer. I know you arecreativeand good at that, but we still have to have the foundations there so we don’t get fucked.”

Did she just call me out?I should have taken offense to a twenty-something nepobaby reading me. Instead, I stared into her green eyes and read her. Her lighthearted chuckle morphed into a serious intensity I’d missed before.

“What? Can’t you handle a bit of criticism?” Daphne quipped, playing it off as a joke.

“I’m a big boy,” I said. “I can handle it.”

She bit her lip, which sent me over the edge. In the past few hours, I watched her flip her ponytail nervously, sift through papers like a naughty librarian, and now, give me hell. I shouldn’t want her. I was a little drunk and a lot drawn to this slightly chaotic version of my boss’s daughter.

“You and Davey are both grown men but sometimes fight like kids!” Daphne doubled down.

“I pay no mind to that.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Are you doubting me, Daphne?” I raised my eyebrows.

A playful smirk curled around her lips. I wanted to kiss it off her face. Too distracted, I said nothing as she reached across me to grab another file, brushing against me. Her perfume and the feeling of her long, soft hair brushing against my arm triggered something.

I leaned in to kiss her. As our lips met, she kissed me back. I reveled in how her lips felt pressed against mine and how sweet she smelled. I shouldn’t do this. It was a disaster in the making, but as she kissed me back, I felt like I’d just let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding.

She pushed me away and stood as if waking from a nightmare.

Daphne rambled, “Shit. I don’t know what I did… I don’t… I’m…”

“Sorry. Sorry. I don’t know why I did that.” I backed away. “I felt like we were having a moment and all that. I guess I wasn’t and?— “

“It’s okay,” Daphne lied. “It’s… fine.”

But she wasn’t fine.

“I am sorry if I gave you some signal, Cal. I feel so stupid. I have a boyfriend. And… it’s a little complicated, but… I would never cheat on him.”

“I’m gonna go,” I said. “It’s nothing you did. I feel terrible. It’s inappropriate, and I am so sorry. Please forgive me.”

I felt like I was pleading for my job.

“It’s okay. We’re both a little drunk,” Daphne said. “I am not upset. We both got our wires crossed. I appreciate your help, but we should take a step back.”

And a cold shower.

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